An autonomous vehicle is one which is capable of sensing its environment and navigating without the use of human input. It is envisioned that such vehicles will be capable of transitioning from an autonomous driving mode and a manual driving mode, in which a driver manually operates the vehicle. It is further envisioned that such autonomous driving may only be allowed on preapproved or certified roads or zones. Thus, a vehicle's initial driving segment will likely require the human driver to control the vehicle and later transition to an autonomous driving mode. While in an autonomous driving mode, a driver of a vehicle may engage in activities which may not be possible while the vehicle is in a manual driving mode. Examples of such activities are sleeping, working or using multimedia applications. Final segment may be initiated by the driver taking back control of the vehicle to depart the certified road and driving manually until destination is reached.
US2013261870A discloses an autonomous machine control system includes a positioning unit measuring position and orientation, and a navigation unit storing a route plan including an intended travel path along a lane. The lane has a width defined by a left-hand boundary and a right-hand boundary. The navigation unit receives an uncertainty value associated with the position or orientation, and creates a virtual two-dimensional footprint based on an actual machine footprint and the uncertainty value. The navigation unit also simulates movement of the virtual footprint along the intended travel path, calculates a left-hand margin value defined by the virtual footprint and the left-hand boundary, and calculates a right-hand margin value defined by the virtual footprint and the right-hand boundary. The margin values are compared to a predetermined value, and speed or travel direction of the machine is controlled if either of the margin values is below the predetermined value.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,393,362 discloses that the function of each autonomous vehicle in a surface mine is performed according to a predetermined trajectory related to its particular task and implemented by a guidance system through on-board GPS and two-way communication hardware. The current position of the vehicle is continuously monitored and correlated to the position of potential hazards along its path, so that corrective action can be taken by implementing appropriate, predetermined control strategies. Each vehicle is assigned a safety envelope that accounts for the vehicle's physical presence and operating tolerances. The safety envelope is characteristic of each vehicle and is defined by a variable space surrounding the vehicle wherein it may be physically present as it travels along its intended trajectory. The shape and size of the safety envelope is dynamically varied to meet safety requirements for current trajectory conditions facing the vehicle as it performs its autonomous function along its predetermined path. The safety envelope is changed according to a predetermined set of rules specific to the vehicle. Intersections between predetermined vehicle trajectories along paths and roadways within the mine's property are identified dynamically by monitoring current traffic conditions and establishing locations where the safety envelopes of vehicles traveling along approaching trajectories could overlap.
WO 2008089966 discloses a method and system for video-based road departure warning for a vehicle on a road. Road departure warning involves receiving an image of a road in front of the vehicle from a video imager, and detecting one or more road markings in the image corresponding to markings on the road. Then, analyzing the characteristics of an image region beyond the detected markings to determine a rating for drivability of the road corresponding to said image region, and detecting the lateral offset of the vehicle relative to the markings on the road based on the detected road markings. A warning signal is generated as function of said lateral offset and said rating.
US 20080243378 discloses a navigation system for use in a vehicle. The system includes an absolute position sensor, such as GPS, in addition to one or more additional sensors, such as a camera, laser scanner, or radar. The system further comprises a digital map or database that includes records for at least some of the vehicle's surrounding objects. These records can include relative positional attributes and traditional absolute positions. As the vehicle moves, sensors sense the presence of at least some of these objects, and measure the vehicle's relative position to those objects. This information, together with the absolute positional information and the added map information, is used to determine the vehicle's location, and support features such as enhanced driving directions, collision avoidance, or automatic assisted driving. In accordance with an embodiment, the system also allows some objects to be attributed using relative positioning, without recourse to storing absolute position information.